''Cause of Death'' is the second album by American

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...

band

Obituary An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...

, released on September 19, 1990. ''Cause of Death'' remains a staple in death metal. The artwork was done by artist

Michael Whelan Michael Whelan (born 29 June 1950) is an Americans, American artist of imaginative Realism (arts), realism. For more than 30 years, he worked as an illustrator, specializing in science fiction and fantasy cover art. Since the mid-1990s, he has ...

. It is their first release with longtime member Frank Watkins on bass, and also their first and only album with guitarist James Murphy, previously of the group

Death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

. Murphy did not contribute to songwriting as the riffs he showed to the band would end up appearing on Disincarnate's 1993 album ''

Dreams of the Carrion Kind ''Dreams of the Carrion Kind'' is an album released by American death metal guitarist James Murphy (guitarist), James Murphy, under the band name Disincarnate. It was released in 1993. History ''Dreams of the Carrion Kind'', Disincarnate's only al ...

''. The cover art was to used in an H. P. Lovecraft collection, ''Lovecraft's Nightmare A''. It was originally supposed to be the cover of

Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte. Formed in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera,Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. the band was a major force in the groove metal, thra ...

's album ''

Beneath the Remains ''Beneath the Remains'' is the third studio album by Brazilian heavy metal band Sepultura, released on April 7, 1989. It was their first release by Roadrunner Records. The album had improved production and songwriting compared to the band's prev ...

'', which was released the year prior,

Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is an American record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock bands. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. History The label was launched in 1980 in t ...

send the original album cover of Beneath the Remains to Obituary.

Monte Conner Monte Conner is a former senior vice president of A&R for Roadrunner Records. He started at Roadrunner in December 1987. He has worked with numerous bands, including Slipknot, Trivium and King Diamond. The bands he has signed, in alphabetica ...

of Roadrunner forced Sepultura to use another Michael Whelan illustration for ''Beneath the Remains'', ''Nightmare in Red''. The second portion of the painting, ''Lovecraft's Nightmare B'' was used by

Demolition Hammer Demolition Hammer is an American thrash metal band from the Bronx, New York, active from 1986 to 1995 and again since 2016. To date, the band has released three full-length studio albums: ''Tortured Existence'' (1991), ''Epidemic of Violence'' ...

for their 1992 album ''

Epidemic of Violence ''Epidemic of Violence'' is the second album by American thrash metal band Demolition Hammer. It was released in early 1992 to critical acclaim and is considered a cult classic in the thrash metal and death metal genres. ''Epidemic of Violence'' ...

''. The incident with Sepultura led to

Igor Cavalera Igor Graziano Cavalera (born 4 September 1970) is a Brazilian musician, best known as the former drummer for the heavy metal band Sepultura, which he co-founded with his brother Max in 1984. Max left the band in 1996, and Cavalera himself wo ...

become upset with Monte Conner, with Cavalera notably having a tattoo of the cover on his arm. Obituary played ''Cause of Death'' in its entirety at the 2019 Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. ''Cause of Death'' contains a cover of

Celtic Frost Celtic Frost () was a Swiss extreme metal band from Zürich. They are known for their strong influence on the development of extreme metalBukszpan, Daniel. ''The Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal''. Barnes & Noble Publishing, 2003. p.43 and avant-ga ...

's "Circle of the Tyrants". Celtic Frost frontman

Tom G. Warrior Thomas Gabriel Fischer (born 19 July 1963), also known by his stage names of Tom G. Warrior and Satanic Slaughter, is a Swiss metal musician. He led the groups Hellhammer and Celtic Frost, and today is the frontman of the band Triptykon. Caree ...

has since endorsed the cover.

Touring

Obituary went on tour in the United States to support ''Cause of Death'' in November 1990 together with label mates

as headliner and

Sadus Sadus is an American thrash metal band from Antioch, California, active from 1985 to 2015, and reunited in 2017. Originally a quartet, the band's sound fuses thrash metal with death metal, featuring highly technical musicianship. They are kno ...

, starting in Florida. They continued their tour activities in Europe in mid-1991.

Track listing

Personnel

Obituary

* John Tardy – vocals * James Murphy – lead guitar *

Trevor Peres Trevor Peres (born July 25, 1969) is an American heavy metal musician best known as the rhythm guitarist,Grow Kory, 6 February 2019, https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2019/02/06/memories-remain-the-making-of-obituarys-cause-of-death, (2019) songwr ...

– rhythm guitar * Frank Watkins – bass * Donald Tardy – drums

Technical personnel

* Obituary – production * Scott Burns – production, engineering, mixing * Jeff Daniel – 1997 reissue production * George Marino – 1997 remastering * Ponkiesbergh – 1997 design * Kent Smith – sound effects * Michael R. Whelan – cover, illustration * Rob Mayworth – band logo design * Carole Segal – back cover photo * Shaun Clark – 1997 photo * Tim Hubbard – 1997 photo * Phil Alexander – 1997

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

References

{{Authority control 1990 albums Obituary (band) albums Roadrunner Records albums Albums produced by Scott Burns (record producer) Albums recorded at Morrisound Recording Albums with cover art by Michael Whelan